For a large variety of agricultural and non-agricultural commodities, such as cocoa, coffee, or grains such as wheat, corn, or rice, protected storage to avoid the direct and indirect effects of oxygen and excessive moisture (which effects include, but are not limited to, enabling insects, rodents, and fungi to flourish) on bulk or bagged stored commodities is required. It is recognized that when commodities are harvested there is a high likelihood that along with the harvested commodity, whether cereal grains, pulses, oilseeds, nuts, spices, or beverages like coffee and cocoa, insects may be contained within the commodity. Also, stored commodities are often subject to rodent attacks. If left untreated, the insect infestations can result in a rapid growth in the number of insects and destruction of the commodity. In addition, the existence of insect infestations in many instances necessitates fumigation, particularly when the commodities are shipped to foreign countries, in order to protect the recipient country from the spread of such insects, i.e., quarantine control treatments.
Typically upon harvest, the commodity is placed in jute bags and stored in large containers, such as sheds, warehouses, or silos. Agriculatural commodities after harvest are often subject to infestation by insects and, in some cases, are previously infested with insects that can consume or damage substantial amounts of the commodity. Further, the stored commodity is typically consumed by rodents resulting in further losses of the commodity.
One approach to prevent these losses is to use potentially dangerous pesticides, such as methyl bromide, on the commodity during storage and thereby released to the environment, or more typically, pesticides are added to the commodity immediately prior to or after shipping. However, the use of these pesticides is undesirable as some pesticides can have an adverse effect on the health of the consumer or the upper atmosphere.